What's On the Radio?

If you didn't read Lekh's post on Lil Wayne and mainstream media, then you should have...BUT to touch on what Lekh was saying, hip-hop has become so watered down by the media that it seems to fit a criteria now. I have lived in southern California my whole life and fully experienced the drastic step from Radio Disney to LA radio. However, kids these days don't get to fully understand that change as it seems Radio Disney and "LA radio" are synonymous now. Well, I guess I'm giving them too much credit because I mean Radio Disney actually plays music.

Now I know this looks like another "Mainstream Sucks" blog post, but for the most part I'm not that into classifying the separate categories of hip-hop. I couldn't care less if it's underground, mainstream, bay, southern, Lil B, old school, or whatever; as long as the music is good it doesn't really matter. Still, I do have a problem when radio stations are trying to tell me that the new LMFAO song is the hottest new hip-hop single out. But wait, these aren't just any radio stations, these are Los Angeles radio stations! The same LA stations that were once home to Snoop Doggy Dogg, N.W.A, Westside Connection and Cypress Hill are now focusing their attention on Lmfao, Katy Perry, Pitbull, Bruno Mars, and whoever the hell sings that Pa Pa Americano stuff. To be honest I don't expect the radio to play Blu or Emanon or even Murs, but there are plenty of southern California artists who are trying to make it big such as Nipsey Hussle, Casey Veggies, and Dom Kennedy who have to find other means of getting their music out because the radio would rather play songs that emphasize Rick Ross' growing asthma problem.

So, while you guys are tuned into 99.1 or Power 106 singing along to the four words in that latest electro techno "hip-hop" record, which is just great to dance to while you're sitting alone in traffic at 4:30pm, I'll be scrolling between 93.5 Kday and talk radio trying to get my fix of music.